Utah @ Brigham Young preview
Marriott Center
Last Meeting ( Dec 2, 2015 ) Brigham Young 75, Utah 83
Utah and BYU have met 257 times on the basketball court since 1909, and the Deseret First Duel has been so evenly matched that the Cougars hold a mere 129-128 lead in wins. After a year’s hiatus, the series resumes Saturday night in Provo where the visiting Utes will get a chance to pull even.
The game also will serve as the de facto Beehive Classic championship game after both programs defeated in-state rivals last Saturday at the Utah Jazz’s arena in Salt Lake City. Utah downed Utah State 77-67 while BYU topped Weber State 74-68. Cougars sophomore forward Yoeli Childs notched his fifth double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds against the Wildcats, and has shown much improvement in pacing the team on the glass (8.9 rebounds per game) while tying guard Elijah Bryant for the team scoring lead at 16.2 points per outing. “(Childs) opens things up for us with our spacing on the floor,” BYU coach Dave Rose told the Salt Lake Tribune earlier this week. “His ability to get out and screen and roll and catch, finish and handle the ball – those are all things he has become a lot more confident in doing.”
TV: 11 p.m. ET, ESPN2
ABOUT UTAH (7-2): The Utes suffered their second double-digit loss of the season Dec. 5 in falling 81-69 at Butler, but bounced back four days later behind guard Justin Bibbins, who had 16 points and seven assists in the win over Utah State. Forward David Collette added 13 points and seven rebounds in the game, and leads the team in scoring with a 13.7 average. Bibbins (11.3 points), forward Donnie Tillman (10.7), guard Sedrick Barefield (9.9) and forward Tyler Rawson (9.8) are all right behind for the balanced Utes, who are also getting a team-leading 6.2 rebounds per game from Tillman and Rawson.
ABOUT BYU (8-2): The Cougars have not lost since a 71-59 defeat to Alabama the day after Thanksgiving, reeling off five straight wins since. Point guard TJ Haws scored a season-high 24 points against Weber State and joins Childs and Bryant in double figures at 12.8 per game while dishing out a team-best 4.2 assists. Haws and Bryant also are the team’s top 3-point threats, combining for 44 of the squad’s 73 treys on the season.
TIP-INS
1. Utah has won three straight in the series, but BYU had reeled off seven straight wins prior to that.
2. The Cougars are 3-1 in Provo this season, averaging 85.2 points while Utah is 1-2 in road/neutral-site contests so far while scoring an average of 70 points per outing.
3. The 6-foot-8 Childs is tied for 32nd nationally with 2.3 blocked shots per outing.
PREDICTION: BYU 75, Utah 70